National Security Policy Diffusion: The Case of FISMA (2002)

• In Event: Competition in the Cyber Domain

Abstract

Policy diffusion has largely been researched in terms of learning, competition, imitation, normative pressure or coercion. I propose an additional mechanism: association - countries adopt policies similar to those of countries with whom they maintain a good relationship. To illustrate this mechanism I have developed a novel measurement of country relationships - the country association score - and show that countries that had a closer relationship with the U.S. adopted information management security reforms faster following America’s adoption of FISMA (2002). In this paper I first contextualize the present research on information management security policy within the literature on policy diffusion and national security policy. Next I go over the theory and hypotheses of the paper. Third I will discuss the methods used to create the country association score and data structure. Fourth, I will contextualize and delineate the US Federal Information Security Management Act of 2002 (FISMA), and discuss how the countries in the G20 adopted similar legislation in the following years. I conclude this paper showing the preliminary results.

Author

• Laura de Castro Quaglia, University of Texas at Austin